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April 2016

Usually we don't release our brand new patterns until a bit closer to Market but this time might just be a special circumstance....

We released our first LITTLE BOXES OF FIGS subscription box last week and most of you who are in the program will have received yours by now. I do want to share that at least one of your boxes decided to take the scenic route courtesy of the US Postal Service. We had a New York customer whose box ended up in Guam first, then Honolulu Hawaii and then finally back to the mainland and on its way to NY. Wouldn't you like to have been on that little boxes travel plan LOL?

We featured a special project in there that we are super excited about. Something that just screams summer! From the emails and comments we have received, it looks like those of you who didn't make it into the subscription program would also like a chance to make this little lovely.

So here she is.... MINI POPSICLES!

[that does beg the question if there is a non-mini version coming as well? All I can say on that one is to stay tuned for just a bit longer].

We think she is just a little bit perfect. What do you think?

Also in the box was a fun summer towel project, called Summer... I know, I know, not the most creative name ever. But it was just right for this.

The Summer towel is available now in our shop as a STARTER KIT for everyone who missed out on the box. It comes with a simple handout, the towel, floss and a pen.

The fabric is perfect for scraps from your stash or using our SHERBET SOLIDS bundle and your favorite selection of cream prints!

I hope you guys had fun making cream 4-patches… I loved it!!! I kept adding more and more creams because I couldn't just stick with what I started. Having a bit of serious fabric ADD around here right now. I have a very real feeling that right after Market I might just be making an entire quilt with nothing but these cream beauties. I think you might want to join me there too. I think it might be the perfect summer throw. Just saying.

** WE HAVE MORE SHERBET BUNDLE AVAILABLE IN THE SHOP AND WE NOW HAVE A NEW CREAM BUNDLE TOO**

Anyway…..

Okay… so in terms of the solids, this is what I am doing. We are going to be making these fun PUMPKIN SEED SHAPES for the entire quilt.

Now before you panic and decide that you are out because it is appliqué… let me explain a few things!

I really want you guys to try this! These are big, easy, simple shapes to turn. The ends are the only tricky parts in any way if you are a beginner…. AND WE ARE GOING TO COVER UP EVERY SINGLE END OF EVERY SINGLE PUMPKIN SEED in the final quilt. So your ends….. ARE TOTALLY AND COMPLETELY IRRELEVANT because they will be covered up by another pieced item. So this is an opportunity for you to try your hand at turning those corners with some starch or some glue and creating this amazing little quilt without having to stress about what your corners will look like in the finished product. I know you guys can do it. Really.

REMEMBER THAT:

1- The corners will not show.

2- The pumpkin seeds themselves will be topstitched to your quilt and not hand appliquéd.

SUPPLIES

This is what you will need to proceed:

Solids Fabrics

Freezer Paper

Starch or a glue stick if you prefer that method.

A little paint brush.

Thin Permanent Marker

THE CUTTING

Step 1: Download the PUMPKIN SEED TEMPLATE. Click HEREBe sure that you don't scale it by mistake when you print it. Keep it at 100%. It should be 8 1/2" from tip to tip!

Step 2: Trace it to a DOUBLE PIECE of Freezer Paper [the doubling of it makes it more durable so you can use it many more times before it starts to fall apart and also it makes it much easier to turn the edges around it]

Step 3: Using our STARCH METHOD OF APPLIQUE [or whatever other prep method you like. you can of course just cut these all out of fusible webbing if you really prefer and it will look just as cute], cut out and make your PUMPKIN SEED shapes. OUR INFO AS ON THE BOTTOM OF THIS BLOG POST. REMEMBER THAT AS YOU READ THE INSTRUCTIONS, YOU ARE NOT GOING TO WORRY ABOUT THE CORNERS OR WHAT THEY LOOK LIKE WHEN YOU TURN THEM BECAUSE THEY WILL BE HIDDEN LATER. USE IT ONLY AS AN OPPORTUNITY TO PRACTICE YOUR TECHNIQUE!

You will need 8 PUMPKIN SEEDS from each color in your Sherbet bundle [use all the colors except for the cream and the black- we will need the black for something else]. Although I have to admit that I cut out more like 11 of the red and a few less of all the others. You can kind of decide that as you go. You will need (80) total for your whole quilt.

HINT: Your quilt will be 56" x 68". If you are starting to panic because you don't want to make that many PUMPKIN SEEDS, then you can make less and see how the process goes from here. You will need them in groups of 4.

Step 4: Enjoy the process. Take your time. After a few uses, usually about 10-15, your template might start to get a bit mangled from the starch and the pressing so just make a new one.

Do not rush these. Make a couple at a time. I think you might enjoy it more than you think you will! :-)

Step 1: Trace your appliqué shape to a double side of a piece of freezer paper.

Step 2: Cut the shapes out on the line.

Step 3: Iron the freezer paper templates to the wrong side of the fabric. Cut a scant ¼” seam allowance around the fabric shape. Clip into the curves and around the points. Remember that sharp curves will need more clips and soft curves will need less. For inner points, cut a few threads shy of the template.

Step 4: Leave the paper in place & paint starch onto the backside of the fabric seam allowance with a small paintbrush. [**spray some starch into a small jar or into the cap so that it has time to “defoam” before you paint it on].

Step 5: Press the seam allowance back onto the freezer paper shape, taking care around corners & curves. A stiletto is very helpful in pulling the points all the way in as you are ironing down your seam allowance and in generally assisting you with the movement of the fabric as you press. In the absence of a stiletto you can use the tip of sharp scissors or a seam ripper.

Step 6: If you have excess fabric on an outer point, trim it down after you have starched down one side of the point. If you ever press more than you needed, simply reapply starch to the portion that you need to re-press down.

Step 7: Once the 1/4” seams are all ironed down, pull out the freezer paper along a straight away & what you have left is a perfect shape. You can reuse that same paper shape many times.

Step 8: Glue your appliqué shape down onto your background, using pin dots of the glue baste-it on the back of the starched down seam allowance. When done you now have a perfectly turned appliqué image ready for whatever kind of applique- hand or machine.

Let me know how it goes!

Joanna

P.S. For those of you who absolutely start to break out in a cold sweat when you see anything that has to be turned under, you can use fusible webbing for your pumpkin seeds. -OR- you can wait until next week when I will give you guys an alternative that is all pieced. I don't think it will look nearly as good or be as charming but I will quickly work up a straight set version that will just have you add pieced sections in where the PUMPKIN SEEDS will go. I am warning you up front that I don't think it makes nearly as beautiful a quilt… but I will give you guys that alternative early next week. xoxox

For those of you who have started following along on our Sherbets & Creams Quilt Along, here is some info:

Question #1: There are more Sherbet Bundles coming… and then more after that!

For those of you who have ordered already, your bundles have either already gone out or will go out on Friday when the next set of fabric arrives.

Question #2: Yes, we have another cream bundle up on the site as of 5 minutes ago!

Question #3: You can join in any time you like. I will give some instructions on the solids next weekend but if your bundle hasn't arrived by then, don't worry. Just start when you can! We will be "quilting along" for at least 4 weeks!

I am also posting some photos as I go along on Instagram, just in case you want to follow along there.

FRIVOL CONTEST UPDATES

For those of you who entered to win one of our yummy little FRIVOLS last Friday or over the weekend…. drum roll please….

If you are BETTY HARDEN and you posted on 4/8/16 11:28 PM then you are the lucky winner of our FRIVOL. Betty said….

I love those tins, and I love Strawberry Fields Revisited. Am buying it like crazy and tried to get in on your new box but got dumped off the site and when I was able to get into your site, they were gone and I am so blue about that as I really wanted to join. Thanks for the opportunity to win a tin. Did join the Fat Quarter Shop box. I keep hoping you will get more of these. Thank you. My next project will be staring Strawberry Fields, and will be a table runner first.

Thanks Betty for playing along with us an for your sweet comments! Email me at joanna@figtreequilts.com to claim your prize.

Okay everyone. So when we first showed you our new yummy Sherbet Bundle, I thought I would give us all something fun to work on together. And then life and my crazy business got in the way LOL… so I am now about a week later than I was supposed to be.

But here we are so I hope you are ready?

Okay so here is the schtick about what you will need to work along with me:

(1) Fig Tree Sherbet Solid Bundle [we have more in the shop this week if you missed out on the first couple of rounds of them. We will most likely carry them as a staple from now on.

We have a couple currently to choose from in the shop but you can also of course use your stash. Or you can start with one of our bundles and add to it from your stash. Whatever makes you happy! To get the same "look" as we have you will want to mix a few very neutral prints [one where the print is very light and doesn't have a lot of contrast], a few text or dot prints [there is something perfectly retro and lovely about adding those to a scrappy quilt like this one] and a few cream prints with a small motif on it that has color on it [if could be any of the colors that you have in the sherbet bundle. We used a small orange swirly from Farmhouse and a small red print and a small peach rose both from Strawberry Fields]. You will want to make sure that all of your neutrals are truly cream or ivory and not tan or white. Those would be fine of course, but the look will be quite different.

Each week I will let you know about the next step of instructions. What do you think? Personally I am really excited about this. In between Market sewing, this will be a really fun thing to work on in steps each week.

WEEK #1

To start off for this week… its going to be fairly straightforward:

From a variety of cream prints, cut (27) 3 1/2" strips total. Cut each strip into (12) 3 1/2" squares. You will need a total of 320 squares.

Fabric Choices: You can use (27) different creams for super scrappiness. You can use (14) 1/4 yds. and cut (2) strips from every fabric. Or you can use (7) 1/2 yd cuts and cut (4) from each. For example, our 7-piece cream bundles would be more than enough fabric. We opted for the 14 fabrics option because… well mostly because I am kind of obsessed with low-volume prints these days and couldn't figure out what to take out. LOL!

Piece them into 4- patches. The best way to do this and not make yourself crazy with the choices is just to choose a somewhat lighter/less busy print and pair it with a slightly darker/more busy print. Always press toward the busier/'colorful/darker one. When making the 4-patches, flip a darker/lighter pair with another one with different prints and your seams will interlock. Press open or to one side at that point.

…sorry about the lighting. took pictures right now in a dark studio.

You will need a total of (80) 4-patches. Easy-peasy! Go as scrappy as you like! Okay, I'm back to the studio to finish off my patches.

If you are on INSTAGRAM, go ahead and add the hashtag #sherbetandcreamsquiltalong

I am sure that most of you already know about those lovely little tins otherwise known as FRIVOLS. Yes, Frivols... something fun, something a bit frivolous and something definitely worth having.

...this is our STRAWBERRY FIELDS REVISITED FRIVOL... it is of course my favorite one in the lot. Yes, of course we are just a tad bit biased :-)

To find out more about the FRIVOL... just in case you have been sewing under a rock for the last year.. click HERE for our full blog post about it.

I was asked what my favorite part of my FRIVOL tin is? Well the tin itself is pretty darn cute! So I guess its kind of a toss up between the tin and the strawberry label [you get two of those little guys]. Really I am looking into how I can print a lot more of those little suckers!

In case you would like to grab one of the few FRIVOLS we have left in stock [yes, we did restock!], click HERE.

...photo stolen from my friend Greg of greydogwoodstudio.com

What you might not know about the FRIVOL is that it is an entire collection that will have 12 lovely little tins by the time its done. I believe that they are currently working on 9-12 for the last four. Have you thought about collecting the entire lovely group? Just a thought....

Cool Beans!

And what you might really not know is that we are having a FRIVOL GIVEAWAY here on the blog for our #6 STRAWBERY FIELDS FRIVOL. Yeah!

If you decide to buy one from us [while we still have 'em] and you win the giveaway, we will refund your payment for sure so don't wait too long...

So just leave a comment below to be entered to win. Tell me what your next project is going to be! GOOD LUCK WITH THE GIVEAWAY!

A Bit About Me

copyright 2015

Please feel free to use any fabric or pattern images to help promote and market our products in your shop or blog. If you are interested in using any more personal photos, please email me before using or posting anywhere else. Thank you.